Stop motion for looms



Aug. 5, 1969 M. M. ROSENSTEIN STOP MOTION FOR LOOMS Filed Jan.

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United States Patent 3,459,241 STOP MOTION FOR LOOMS Mitchell M. Rosenstein, 133 Bolivia St., Willimantic, Conn. 06226 Filed Jan. 5, 1968, Ser. No. 695,930 Int. Cl. D03d 51/34, 51/00 US. Cl. 139-371 10 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A stop motion, for looms having a shuttle for the filler thread, which includes a plunger carried by the shuttle for operating an electric switch and causing stoppage of the loom. Said plunger being normally held in retracted position and released to operate the switch upon the filler thread being broken or exhausted.

Background of the invention Known stop motion devices for looms have means actuated upon the breakage or run-off of the filler thread in a shuttle for controlling an electric circuit to cause stoppage of the loom. Such known devices, however, employ electrical circuit controls which have current carrying parts, such as conductor bars and the like, that are exposed and therefore subject to being rendered inoperative clue to the accumulation of lint and dirt on such exposed parts.

The general object of this invention is to provide and improved stop motion device in which the current carrying parts are protected against the lint and dirt.

A further object of the invention is the provision of an enclosed type electric switch in the shuttle block and a simple, inexpensive mechanism in the shuttle for operating said switch upon the breakage or run-off of the filler thread in said shuttle.

A still further object is to provide an improved switch operating mechanism in which a conventional filler thread tensioning spring in the shuttle is utilized for actuating the switch operating means.

Brief description of the drawing FIG. 1 is a bottom view of a conventional shuttle, partly in section, showing an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an end view of said shuttle.

FIG. 3 is a rear view thereof.

FIG. 4 is a front view of a shuttle block used in conjunction with the said shuttle.

FIG. 5 is a sectional side view of said block on line 55 of FIG. 4.

FIG. 6 is a section bottom view of the switch operating plunger of said device; said plunger being shown in retracted position.

FIG. 7 is a similar view showing said plunger in the projected position which it takes upon breakage or run-01f of the filler thread.

FIG. 8 is a diagrammatic view illustrating an electric circuit which is controlled by said improved stop motion.

Description of the invention As shown in the drawings, there is illustrated only one shuttle and one shuttle block. It will be understood, however, that my invention is preferably incorporated in each shuttle and shuttle block of a multi-shuttle loom in the manner shown.

The numeral 5 denotes a shuttle of conventional form such as commonly used on looms for weaving narrow fabrics. The said shuttle is slidable in a groove 6 in a shuttle block 7, also of conventional form, which has rotatably mounted therein a drive gear 8 which meshes with Patented Aug. 5, 1969 a row of teeth 9 in the shuttle and drive said shuttle through the shed of the material being woven in the loom and into the groove of the block on the opposite side thereof. Such shuttles usually have an opening 10 therein in which is rotatably mounted a quill 11 that has the filler thread 12 wound thereon. A brake bar 13 is normally employed to prevent free rotation of the quill.

In the type of shuttle illustrated, there are provided a pair of slack take up and filler thread tensioning springs 1414 which are contained in holes 15 in the sides of the shuttle and carry, at their free ends, thread receiving rings 16-46. A separate ring 17 is provided at the top of the opening 10 and a thread guide eye 18 extends through the outer end of the shuttle adjacent to said ring. In conventional shuttles of the type above described, the springs 1414 are usually anchored at one end and are adapted to maintain tension on the filler thread 12 as it is unwound from the quill during the operation of the loom.

The said filler thread is threaded in the shuttle by first passing it through the ring 17, then through the rings 1616 and then through the guide eye 18 as shown. As the filler thread is pulled from the quill 11 by the movement of the shuttle through the shed of the warp, the rings 1616 will be pulled toward the center of the shuttle and the springs 1414 will be stretched and thus properly tensioning the filler thread and also preventing slackening thereof.

In adapting my invention to the conventional type of shuttle above described, I preferably utilize one of the tensioning springs 14-14 for causing operation of my improved stop gnotion device which will now be described:

An anchoring sleeve 19 is mounted in the inner end of the opening 15 and has a shoulder 20 to engage a shoulder in said opening to locate the sleeve therein.

In the form of the invention shown in the drawing, I preferably use in electric switch of the type known as a reed switch which is operated by a magnet. To operate this switch, a magnet in the form of a plunger 21 is slideably contained Within the sleeve '19 and has a stem 22 secured thereto and extending through an axial hole in the inner end wall 23 of the sleeve, which in this case is provided by a cap member suitably secured to the sleeve. The said sleeve has a wall 24 closing the rear end thereof to shield against the accumulation of dust and lint in the interior of the sleeve which would interfere with the free sliding movement of the magnet plunger 21.

A stop sleeve 25 is provided surrounding the portion of the stem within the sleeve 19 to abut the wall 23 and thereby limit the inward movement of the said plunger 21. A separate spring 26 also surrounds said portion of the stem, abuts the wall 23 and urges the plunger from its retracted position shown in FIG. 6 towards its normal position shown in FIG. 7.

The inner end of the stem 22 is secured to the end of the utilized spring 14, preferably by being threaded thereto, at a suitable distance from the end of the sleeve 19 to permit sliding movement of the plunger 21 to its normal position under the tension of the spring 26.

The reed switch used with my invention, indicated at 27, is normally open and includes a hermetically sealed casing 28 containing therein a contact bar 29 and a reed bar 30 which is normally spaced from the bar 29, as shown in FIG. 6. The said switch is mounted in a recess 31 in the #back of the block 7 and is disposed close to the bottom of the groove 32 in which the shuttle 5 also travels during the operation of the loom; the switch being separated from said bottom only by a thin wall 33 of the block material between the said bottom of the groove 3 32 and the bottom of the recess 31. The said switch 27 has leads 34 and 35 extending therefrom, through holes in the block 5, to terminals 36 and 37 respectively.

As shown in FIG. 8, a motor 38 is connected in a main electric circuit 39 through a switch 40. Said circuit has a suitable transformer 41 leading to a low voltage circuit 42 that is controlled by a plurality of the switches 27, one for each shuttle in the loom to operate a relay 43 to the switch 40 and thereby de'energize the motor 38 and stop the loom.

The operation of said stop motion device is as follows:

When the filler thread 12 is under tension, as during the normal operation of the loom, the utilized spring 14 will be held by said filler thread in its stretched condition and said spring will pull the plunger 21 inwardly and compress the spring 26, as clearly shown in FIG. 6. When the filler thread is exhausted, or upon its being broken, the spring 14 will be released so that it will contract and thereby release the plunger 21. Said plunger will then be moved by the spring 26 to its normal position shown in FIG. 7. Then, as the shuttle passes through the groove 32 in the block 7 and the plunger 21 passes by the reed switch 27, the said plunger will magnetically cause the reed 30 to contact the bar 29 and thus close the said switch to energize the circuit 42 and operate the relay 43 to open the switch 40 and thereby deenergize the motor 38 and stop the loom.

It will be understood that the spring 26 is weaker than the pull from the spring 14 so that it will yield under the said pull to allow the spring 14 to move the plunger 21 to its retracted position shown in FIG. 6, in which position it is stopped by abutment of the stop sleeve 25 against the wall 23. When the pull is released, the spring 26 will expand and thus return the plunger to its normal position in which it will operate as above described to close the electric switch 27 and stop the loom.

In order to quickly determine which of the switches 27 has been operated in looms where a multiplicity of shuttles are used, I may provide, for each of said switches, a self locking relay 44, as shown in FIG. 8; said relay having an indicating light 45 and a switch 46 with a latch 47.

When the switch 27 is momentarily closed, by movement of the magnet plunger 21 to the position shown in FIG. 7, the relay 44 will close the switch 46 and the latch 47 will keep said switch closed. This will energize the indicating light 45 and thereby provide lasting indication as to which of the switches 27 was operated -by its respective plunger 21 and stopped the loom. After the cause of the stoppage has been attended to, the switch 46 may be returned to normal by manually tripping the latch 47.

I claim:

1. In a loom including a shuttle block, a shuttle moveable in said block, a quill mounted in said shuttle and carrying a filler thread thereon, and a tension spring for tensioning said thread; a stop motion mechanism including an electric switch mounted in said block and controlling the operaiton of said loom, and an operating plunger within said shutttle and connected to said spring for operating said switch to cause stoppage of said loom.

2. The loom set forth in claim 1 wherein said spring upon being stretched is adapted to move said plunger from a normal to a retracted position and said switch is operable by said plunger when in the normal position.

3. The loom set forth in claim 1 wherein said plunger is slideable within the shuttle into retracted and normal positions and secured to the tension spring whereby when said spring is stretched the plunger is pulled into the retracted position and when the spring is contracted the plunger is released, and a separate spring for returning said plunger to the normal position upon being released by the tension spring.

4. The loom set forth in claim 1 wherein said plunger is out of contact with said switch and magnetized whereby when in the normal position and moved past the switch said plunger will operate said switch magnetically.

5. For a loom including a shuttle moveable in a shuttle block and having a quill with a filler thread thereon, a tensioning spring for tensioning said thread, an operating plunger moveable Withi said shuttle to retracted and normal positions and secured to said tensioning spring; said spring when stretched being capable of pulling the plunger to the retracted position and to release said plunger upon being contracted, a separate spring adapted to move the plunger to the normal position upon it being released, and a switch mounted within said block and operable by said plunger when in the normal position to cause stoppage of said loom.

6. For a loom, the subject matter set forth in claim 5 wherein said plunger is magnetized and entirely enclosed within the shuttle and is adapted to operate said switch magnetically.

7. For a loom, the subject matter set forth in claim 5 wherein said switch is contained within the shuttle block and shielded from the exterior of said block by a wall portion of the block material and adapted to be magnetically operated upon the plunger passing by said wall portion while in the normal position.

8. In a loom including a shuttle block, a shuttle moveable in said block, a quill mounted in said shuttle and carrying a filler thread thereon, and a tension spring moveable in a hole in said shuttle for tensioning said filler thread; a stop motion mechanism including a magnetically operable switch mounted in said block for controlling the operation of said loom, a sleeve inserted in said hole substantially flush with the surface of the shuttle, a magnetized plunger moveable in said sleeve to retracted and normal positions, abutment means between said plunger and sleeve for locating the plunger in the retracted position, the said tension spring being secured to said plunger and adapted when stretched to retain the plunger in retracted position and when contracted to release said plunger, and a separate spring within said sleeve adapted to return the plunger to its normal position upon being released by the tension spring whereby as the said shuttle moves in the shuttle block and the plunger is carried past the switch in said block, the said switch will be operated by the plunger to cause stoppage of the loom.

9. For a loom, the subject matter set forth in claim 8 wherein the end of said sleeve is closed to shield the plunger from the exterior of the shuttle.

10. For a loom, the subject matter set forth in claim 8 wherein the said magnetically operated switch is mounted in a recess in the back of the shuttle block and shielded from the front surface of said block by a thin wall of the block material.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,335,111 11/1943 Davis 139371 2,419,437 4/ 1947 Bricout 139371 X 2,746,490 5/1956 Hall 139-371 2,874,728 2/1959 Rosenstein 139371 2,969,814 1/1961 Heym 139371 3,291,161 12/1966 Wagner 139-371 FOREIGN PATENTS 401,650 1/ 1943 Italy.

343,975 2/ 1960 Switzerland. 3,443,383 3/ 1960 Switzerland.

JAMES K. CHI, Primary Examiner U.S. Cl. X.R. 139-336 

